Pit Bull Attack In Gainesville Kills Dog & Injures Owner

Published September 6th, 2013

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GAINESVILLE - It was a vicious and unprovoked attack. Now, a small dog is dead and a young woman was hospitalized after a Pit Bull attacked them.

The University of Florida student was attacked while trying to save her pet. The Pit Bull weighed around 50 or 60 pounds while the victim's dog was a small toy Yorkie named Toby. Toby's owner was bitten and possibly faces hand surgery now. If the Pit Bull is put down, it will be a lose-lose situation for both parties involved.

Toby and Brittany Keating were inseparable best friends. They had been for the past two years. "I'll never have a dog like toby he was just too perfect," Brittany said. She said he was a "Lovable little dog. He as so spoiled, cute and knew it. But he was just perfect and very well behaved... He was house-trained he slept with me at night."

Brittany was out here walking her dog when she says a pit bull without a leash ran towards her and began attacking toby. When she tried to intercept she got bitten by the Pit Bull. I just remember going after my dog because that's my baby and me and three other people tried to stop him and we couldn't. By the time he finally let him go, it was too late," Brittany said.

Both dog owners live in Southwood Apartments, a complex that does not allow Pit Bulls. Every resident signs the following contract and I quote, "No Pit Bulls or Pit Bull mixes of any kind are allowed."

Beth Keating the victim’s mother said, "I mean I have medical bills... She went in an ambulance, I don't know what last night's going to cost... I mean I am on a lease; they're probably going to have to break my lease. I am going to have to move her. I've got to get her another apartment. I don't know where I am going to come up with any of this. This is something that wasn't planned."

While we knocked on the Pit Bull owner's door, we got no answer. In the meantime the Pit Bull is currently under a ten day quarantine with Alachua County's Animal Services, where he will be deemed an aggressive or dangerous dog. Aggressive dogs can go home with many restrictions while dangerous dogs are put down. Animal Services has yet to come up with a decision for this Pit Bull.

"You know we're not really sure which way it would go... Aggressive or dangerous,” Jessica Lauginiger an investigator of Alachua County Animal Services said. “If nobody would have gotten bitten it would have been an aggressive dog investigation but since somebody was bit it could go either way."

The owners of the apartment say they've given the Pit Bull owner a 7 day notice for non-compliance. They also sent us over a statement that reads: "Banta properties sympathizes with the Keating family. This is why it has always been our policies that pit bull and pit bull mixes are not permitted at any of the properties we manage."